The Guy Across the Hall
by lucyjane423
Summary: Bella and Alice live in an apartment building in Manhattan. Edward and Jasper live across the hall. There are no boundaries, and one day Edward walks in on a topless Bella. Their lives become a series of competitions to see who can embarrass the other one more. AH/OOC, eventual HEA, with lots of coffee and lots of references to "Friends." Rated M for future chapters & language.
1. Chapter 1

**Hii, everyone! This is just something I had in my head, inspired by a very recent ****_Friends_**** marathon and a hilarious episode from the first season called "The One With The Boobies." I'm not sure where I'm planning on taking this, and yes, the plot of this chapter and some of the dialogue is borrowed from the episode (and paraphrased, but still), but if I do expand the story it will be of my own design (with a few memorable ****_Friends_**** quotes and plot points maybe mixed in... maybe). So, read, let me know what you think, and if you like it, I'll continue with it. And yes, I am also working diligently on my other story, so don't worry! I am capable of doing things at once.**

**Now the legalise - I do not own ****_Twilight_**** or any of its characters, nor do I own ****_Friends_**** or their characters (if I did, I would be filthy, filthy rich). I just own the crazy crap that floats around in my head. Enjoy! ~ LJ**

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I had just gotten out of the shower when I thought I heard the front door to the apartment open and close. Alice, my roommate, and I never bothered to lock the door when either of us were home. Two of our best friends, Edward and Jasper, lived right across the hall and basically used our place as an extension of theirs (which made sense; we always had food and they were always hungry). Though we were all closer to thirty than we were to twenty, living in the Greenwich Village area of Manhattan was a little too expensive to maintain by yourself, so we were all happy to have roommates. Alice and I had been best friends since elementary school, and Alice's brother, Emmett, had gone to college with Edward. Jasper sort of just appeared in Edward's apartment one day and he'd been there ever since. I think they met through a "roommate wanted" ad that Edward had posted one day, desperate to fill his spare room after his former roommate, Jake, had up and left one day because he got married. It was sort of nice, the way things worked out.

I waited to see if I heard any movement, or the sound of Jasper wolfing down our leftovers from breakfast (he was not a quiet eater) and when I was met with silence, I finished toweling off my hair, wrapped it around my waist, and opened the door to walk across the apartment to my bedroom. We were on the tenth floor of the building, and though the big bay window in the living room had no curtains, no one could really see in. Plus, I had worked really hard to get my body to look the way it did.. so if someone _did_ see in, well. I didn't think it would be that big a deal.

I had just made it to the couch when I heard a noise behind me. Startled, I slowly turned and saw Edward, cup of coffee in his hand and jaw on the floor, staring at me. It took me a minute to remember I was completely topless and I let out a loud, albeit a little delayed, scream. Desperate to cover up, I grabbed the first thing I could get my hands on – the afghan on the back of the couch – and wrapped it hastily around my top half.

"What the hell, Edward!"

It took Edward a minute to respond, and he quickly set his coffee on the table, some of the liquid sloshing over the side. "Oh, god, Bella, I am so sorry. I just -"

I went off. "Are you kidding me? You just barge in here, you don't knock, you don't have any respect for anybody's privacy -"

"Bella, just wait a sec -" Edward pleaded, holding his hand up.

"What? No, you wait! This is ridiculous!"

"Can I just say one thing?"

"What! What?"

Edward cleared his throat. "It's just... You..." He cleared his throat a second time and tried again. Poor guy certainly was flustered, but damn it if he didn't deserve to be. "That blanket has a relatively open weave and I can still see your... nipular area."

"Oh!" Disgusted, I tightened my grip on the blanket and stomped across the apartment to my bedroom and slammed the door. Soon after, I heard the front door slam shut. I was sure my face was a bright shade of red, and I could only hope that Edward was just as embarrassed as I was. I also hoped that perhaps he learned his lesson, and that the next time he came over, he would knock first.

Later that afternoon, Alice, Edward, Jasper, Emmett, and his girlfriend, Rose, were hanging around the coffee house where I worked part-time while I finished my MBA. It was a cute little place, with lots of plush, mismatched furniture and warm, mismatched artwork on the walls. And it was convenient – it was the bottom floor of the apartment building where we lived. Unfortunately, that fact also made it a permanent hangout of our group. I was almost convinced that they thought they'd eventually get free stuff if they were there all the time. I didn't make enough to be able to grant them free stuff, but sometimes I got to take home day-old pastries. So there was that.

I was about ten minutes from finishing my shift and stopped by the sofa and chairs that my friends occupied while they were there to see if they needed anything.

"Okay, can I get anybody anything else?"

"Yes, can I get -" Edward started.

"No, I'm sorry, we're all out of those. Anybody else?"

Jasper looked back and forth between me and Edward, trying to figure out what was going on.

"Uh, Bells, is something wrong?" he asked. "Are we missing something here?"

"No," I replied quickly. "No, not at all." Edward smirked at me, and I shot him a look, silently imploring him to keep his mouth shut. It didn't work.

"Oh, she's just mad because I saw her boobies," he stated nonchalantly, looking at his nails before meeting the perplexed stares of our friends. I sighed and pinched the bridge of my nose between my fingers before crossing my arms over my chest. Emmett looked.. well, he looked mad. Even though he was Alice's older brother, he'd always been protective of both of us, and he obviously didn't like the idea of his best friend seeing his pseudo-sister's boobies.

"What, uh, what were you doing seeing her boobies?" he asked as he stared pointedly at Edward. Edward shrugged.

"It was an accident," he said. "It's not like I was across the street with a telescope and a bucket of fried chicken."

"Oh, god," I said. "Alright, okay, can we change the subject, please?" I walked over to stand behind next to Rose, who was sitting on the far end of the couch. Rose nodded.

"Yeah, these are not her boobies," she said, pointing at my chest. "These are her breasts."

Rose was not the brightest bulb in the box, but she definitely meant well, especially when it came to try and diffuse a situation.

"Okay, Rose? I was hoping for _more_ of a change," I said.

"I always liked 'bazingas,'" Alice chimed in. Everyone turned to look at her. I glared at her and mouthed, _What the fuck._ Alice grinned. "Gives them a sort of... an exotic spin."

"Can we – can we drop this already, please?" I asked, sitting down in the empty armchair next to the sofa.

"I don't know what you're getting so upset about, Bella," Edward said. "You have very nice boobies."

"Nice? They're _nice?_ What is that? I mean, _mittens_ are nice."

"O-kay, rock, hard place, _me,_" Edward said, gesturing with his hands on either side of his head. That earned him a laugh from our friends. I wanted to crawl into a hole.

Thankfully it was then that my boss, Angela, summoned me to the back to finish my prep work and clock out to go home. I planned on escaping out the back door when I was done, because I was too embarrassed to try and shoot the breeze with my friends after my shift. They were never going to let me forget this. Not for awhile, at least. They always told me I needed to loosen up a bit and that I was too uptight, but while I was pretty comfortable with my body, I was _not_ comfortable with Edward seeing it in all its naked, freshly-showered glory. Our friendship was strictly platonic. I didn't need this to change that.

I made it home without incident, and was relieved when I remembered that they were all going out to the movies after they left the coffee house. I had some studying to do and a term paper to write, so I had declined their invitation that morning, long before the boobies incident happened. I was actually grateful that I had the apartment to myself for at least the next three hours, and I was planning on being in bed by the time they all got back.

I had just changed into my pajamas and sat down at my desk when my phone buzzed, indicating a new text message. Unlocking the screen, I saw it was from Edward. I braced myself for whatever sarcastic thing he had to add to his remarks from earlier, and had already began to formulate a comeback in my head when I was taken aback by what he had written. It was completely unexpected.

_**I really am truly sorry about earlier, Bella. Forgive me? - E**_

I smiled to myself and quickly typed a reply.

_**Forgiven. This time. Just don't let it happen again. - B**_

_**I can't promise anything, but I'll try. - E**_

_**Yeah, you will, or I'm gonna make you wear a bell around your neck. - B**_

_**? - E**_

_**So I can hear you coming, you stealthy bastard. - B**_

_**Oh. Kinky. ;) - E**_

_**Shut it. Go watch your movie and leave me to my academia. -B**_

_**Alright, alright, fine. Have a good night. And Bella? - E**_

_**What? - B**_

_**I was wrong before. - E**_

_**About...? - B**_

_**They're definitely not nice. They are **__**exquisite.**__** - E**_

"What?" I asked out loud to my empty room. Shaking my head, I turned my phone off and returned my attention to my studies, but it was all I could to do make myself concentrate. What was he getting at? If he was planning on messing with my head, he was definitely winning, and I couldn't let that happen. I'd have to formulate a plan to get him back. Or, at the very least, get even.

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**Thanks for reading! I look forward to your thoughts/comments/concerns/etc.**

**Also - if you've never watched ****_Friends_****... OMG, GO WATCH IT NOW. :)**


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter two... from Edward's POV. Enjoy!**

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_**Edward's POV**_

Bella and Alice _never_ locked their door. Personally, I fucking hated that fact. We lived in a very crowded building in the middle of one of the busiest cities in the world. The last thing that two single girls needed was to leave themselves open to creepers, homeless people and burglars. I didn't like that they weren't safe. But their door being unlocked all the time presented a giant advantage to me and my roommate, Jasper.

I worked as a mid-level accountant in a large firm uptown. Jasper was an "actor" who was out of work more often than he was working. He had odd jobs from time to time, but most of the time he was out trying to pick up women or hanging out at the coffeehouse downstairs. Together, the two of us could barely cover our rent and utilities, and the only food-like items we ever kept on hand with any regularity were beer, cereal, and eggs.

Alice was a chef at the Gotham Bar and Grill. Most people who work in the restaurant world don't want to bring their work home with them. Alice, however, loved to cook and she loved to feed and take care of all of us. Bella only worked part-time at the coffeehouse, because she was in school working on her MBA, but she really only worked there to fund her shopping habit. Bella was an only child and a trust-fund baby.. able to collect the bulk of her money after she finished school. Her father helped out with living expenses, but any kind of shopping or entertainment expenses were Bella's responsibility. The bottom line was, the girls always had food in their apartment. Good food. _Gourmet_ food. So it only stood to reason that Jasper and I had to help them eat some of that food. Those two wouldn't be able to finish it all themselves.. couldn't have it going to waste.

This morning wasn't any different from other mornings. Alice had left super early to go do her prep work at the restaurant, and Jasper had never come home after his date from the night before. We were out of coffee, but I knew the girls would have some. Probably some breakfast, too. I also knew Bella didn't have to be at the coffeehouse until lunchtime, so the door was going to be open. When I got into their apartment, I yelled a hello into the empty kitchen/living room area, and got no response, but I heard the water running in the shower. Bella was in the shower.

"Dear god," I said to myself, shaking my head to clear it of any thoughts that might involve Bella, naked and wet in the shower.

I'd been harboring a secret crush on her ever since she moved in with Alice three years ago. She'd just kind of showed up out of the blue one day, wearing, of all things, a wedding dress. Apparently she had been poised to marry some douchebag named Mike Newton, the son of a socialite in her parents' circle that she'd been set up with in college. Alice had been unable to attend the wedding, citing a scheduling conflict at work, but secretly she declined because she hated that whole country club crowd. At the last minute, Bella had climbed out of a window and ran away, and came to the only place she could think of. She'd been here ever since.

I could never tell her about my feelings, because, for one, it was almost painfully clear that she didn't feel the same way for me. Secondly, I didn't want to make things awkward for our group of friends. I had confessed my feelings to Jasper one night and he was adamant that I keep my mouth shut.

"No, dude, you can't tell her, ever," he'd said around a mouthful of pizza. "There's a code. She's our friend, she lives across the hall. Technically, we're kind of roommates. You don't hook up with your roommate."

That conversation happened last year. Since then, I'd tried to deny myself the feelings I had for her, even going so far as to trying to get back into a relationship with my on-again, off-again girlfriend Vicky. After the last attempt, I decided that the Vicky door would remain closed forever. And so my mind continually drifted to Bella.

I wasn't sure what it was about her, but there was something there that drew me to her. I mean, of course she was gorgeous, with long brown hair, bright blue eyes and long, tan, legs. She worked out and kept herself in really good shape. But there was more to it than that. She was warm and funny, and she could totally hold her own against my sarcasm. That in itself was huge. She was smart, and she cared so much about her friends. The connection we shared was something I had been feeling since the moment we met, and it had only gotten stronger since then. I had no way of knowing if she felt the same way.

So here I was, trying not to picture Bella all soapy and wet and naked in the shower, trying not to listen to see if I could hear her moving around in there (wow, stalk much, Cullen?). I saw that there was almost a full pot of coffee on the counter and leftover waffles on a plate next to the coffee. I wasn't really that hungry, but the coffee was calling my name, so I grabbed a mug from the cabinet and poured myself a cup. Just then, I heard the shower turn off and the curtain slide open. I gulped, and took a sip of my coffee. I had planned on letting her know I was there as soon as she came out of the bathroom, so as not to startle her, but I was rendered speechless by what I saw when she did come out.

She was naked from the waist up, with a towel wrapped around her waist. Her hair was wet, hanging in damp ringlets down her back. She. Was. Gorgeous. Her breasts were perfectly round and just the right size; they looked like they would fit perfectly in my hands. Her nipples were puckered from hitting the cool air in the apartment. Her tanned stomach was tight and toned, and... oh, god. I could feel myself getting a little, erm, excited. She still had no idea I was there and I felt bad ogling her, so I cleared my throat. Startled, she whipped around, saw me, screamed and grabbed the open-weave afghan off the back of the couch. She yelled at me, I told her I could still see her nipples through the blanket and she stormed off to her bedroom and slammed the door. I left soon after that, trying to clear my head of the delicious images I was sure were going to be burned into my brain forever. Not that I minded. I would have liked to have seen more of her, actually.

That afternoon, we had all been gathered at the coffeehouse and I ended up confessing what had happened to everyone. Bella, of course, was mortified and obviously snuck out of the back door after her shift ended because we never saw her before we left to go to the movies. I remembered her declining our invitation that morning because she had to study, so I knew she was probably at home in her room, hunched over a book. I decided to text her to apologize, relieved when she responded with some of her usual snark. Feeling bold, I ended the conversation by telling her that her breasts were exquisite. And I meant it. I kind of hated that I wasn't there to see her reaction... but I'm sure she'd let me know what she thought the next time we saw each other.

The next day, we were all sitting around the girls' apartment, listening to Jasper tell us a story about how his father was cheating on his mother, and how his mother knew about it and wanted to let it slide because the guilt his father felt about cheating made him a better husband somehow. The entire situation was pretty fucked up. Bella got up from the kitchen table and walked into the living room, stopping beside the easy chair that I was sitting in.

"Jasper, I'm sorry, honey," she said, patting him on the shoulder before perching on the arm of my chair. "Why can't parents just stay parents, you know? Why do they have to become people? Why... why can't you stop staring at my breasts?" She was staring down at me. I was staring at her breasts. Blatantly. I mean, they were right there, covered up by a t-shirt, but I still had the memory of what they looked like bare fresh on my mind. I slowly looked up and locked eyes with her, then turned to see the rest of the group staring at me.

"What?" I asked.

"Honestly, Edward, did you not get a good enough look yesterday?"

"Well, now that you mention it.."

"Oh, my god," she said, walking quickly off to her bedroom and closing the door. I felt Alice's eyes on me.

"What?" I asked again.

"Edward," Alice said, pointing to Bella's door, "You'd better go fix that. Now."

"What's to fix? So I saw her breasts. So what."

"Seriously? She's mortified and you're just not making it easier. Go. Now." Alice shot me the scariest look I've ever seen her give anyone and pointed to Bella's door again.

"Alright, alright," I said, standing up. "Evil little pixie." Taking a deep breath, I walked across the room and knocked softly on Bella's door. When she quietly responded that I could come in, I opened it and walked inside, finding her sitting cross-legged on her bed. She eyed me warily from where she sat.

"Bella," I started, sitting down beside her on the edge of the bed, "I'm sorry." I made sure to look her square in the eyes as I spoke. I didn't want to risk my eyes drifting down to her chest. But I think I probably startled her more by staring at her eyes, because she suddenly raised an eyebrow and tilted her head to the side

"What's wrong with you?" she asked.

"I... well... you're a beautiful woman, Bella, and-"

"No, Edward. Your eyes. Why are you staring at me like that? You're kind of freaking me out." _Oh._ I blinked and shook my head, laughing nervously.

"Oh. I didn't want to risk my eyes drifting.. downward, again," I said sheepishly.

She raised an eyebrow. "You had to concentrate that hard to look me in the eye?"

"I meant what I said yesterday, Bella. Exquisite."

Bella's face turned the loveliest shade of pink and she turned away from me. How could she be embarrassed? I gently touched her chin and turned her to look at me. "Bella," I said. "You can't possibly be embarrassed. You're a beautiful woman."

"I'm.. well, I'm not..." she started, obviously flustered. This was new. I'd never flustered her before. Was it possible she maybe returned my feelings? "I'm not embarrassed, Edward. I mean, yeah, a little bit, but no, I have a rocking body and you should feel very privileged to have seen it." Oh, sarcasm. Okay. Bella only used sarcasm to deflect. This was going to be fun.

"Is that so?"

"Absolutely. And it's a little unfair. I think I should get to see your... stuff."

I coughed. Definitely wasn't expecting that. "Excuse me?"

"Tit for tat, Edward. You've seen mine, you should show me yours." So she only wanted to see my "stuff" to get even? Oh, no. No, no. That wasn't happening.

"Yeah, well, you're not going to see my tat," I said, smirking. "I mean, not for revenge. I'd be happy to show it to you under more.. favorable circumstances, though."

"Favorable circumstances? What are you getting at, Cullen?"

I sighed. "Bella, I meant it when I said you were exquisite. I have wanted nothing more than to be able to see you... all of you... since we met." Bella's eyes widened, and she laughed nervously.

"What?"

"I'm serious, Bella. I've tried to stay your friend, but now that I've seen more of you, well. I want _more_ of you. More _with_ you."

"Are you kidding me right now?"

I inched closer to her. "I am completely serious. One day, Bella. One day you're gonna realize that you and I would be perfect together."

"And if I don't?"

"You will. And until then, I'm not going to stop trying to make you see it. I'm also not going to erase the memory of your perfect breasts from my mind anytime soon." I grinned, and dropped my voice to a low whisper, close to her ear. "You're exquisite, Bella Swan." And with that, I got up to leave her room.

I turned to look at her once before I left. She was staring at me from the bed, mouth open and eyes wide. And that gorgeous pink blush was all over her face. I winked at her and closed the door.

Yeah, this was definitely going to be fun.


	3. Chapter 3

_**Bella's POV**_

I stared in disbelief at the door after he left my room and closed my door. I'm "exquisite"? "We'd be perfect together"? What the hell was he playing at? The longer I sat there, staring at my door, the more confused I felt, and the more confused I felt, the more pissed off I got. I couldn't decide if he was fucking with me, or if he was legitimately confessing that he had feelings for me.. in his weird, Edward-like way. And if he was legitimately confessing that he felt something for me, well, I wasn't quite sure how to feel about it. I'd be lying if I said I didn't find him at least a little attractive, but...

Oh, my God. I couldn't even go there.

It's _Edward._ He's one of my best friends. I thought he was _gay_ when I met him. I never would have even entertained having anything but platonic feelings for him, ever. To be honest, when I first moved in with Alice, I'd had a really bad crush on Jasper... until I realized that he had a revolving door on his bedroom, and then I decided to settle for him just being a friend. Edward wasn't even a blip on the radar, he was just the dorky, sarcastic guy across the hall who ate all of our food. And yeah, I guess he was probably just as good-looking back then as he is now, but I honestly never even noticed until he waltzed into our apartment one morning, looking all polished in a suit and tie, ready for his first day at the job he has now.

I had always had a thing for guys in suits. Probably a result of growing up around the country club crowd, all of the men were always in suits. Anyway.

That morning when he walked in, I couldn't take my eyes off of him. His normally unkempt hair was... well, it was still unkempt, but it almost looked like he had done it on purpose. There was definitely some sort of product in it. And his eyes, they had looked so green that day, all shining with excitement at the prospect of having a real, _legit_, grown-up job. That was probably the first time I noticed that he was really a very attractive man. And he made me laugh, which made him more attractive... but, oh, god, I couldn't. I couldn't go there. It would ruin everything.

Wouldn't it?

I tried to stay hidden in my room for the rest of the day, but seeing as though it was only two in the afternoon, I probably wasn't going to be able to pull that off. Especially if I ended up having to pee. The bathroom was clear across the other side of the apartment. Groaning, I flopped onto my back on the bed and pulled a pillow over my face. Damn that Edward Cullen.

I managed to have a few minutes peace and quiet, and then I heard a loud thunk hit my bedroom door. Startled, I sat up, and listened for any more noise. Sure enough, I heard a second thunk, and then I heard Alice.

"Bella! Come out here!"

I groaned again, slid off the bed and slowly walked over to the door. I pulled it open and stuck my head out... and saw Alice's shoes lying just outside. The source of the thunking.

"Al," I said, "You couldn't just get up and knock on the door? You had to throw your shoes?"

Alice shook her head. "Nope. Too comfy to get up. What're you doing in there?"

"Uh. I, ah, I was lying down. I have a headache," I lied, avoiding Edward's eyes. He was smirking at me from across the room. _Bastard._

"Well, go take some Advil and come out here with us. We're trying to solve something."

"God, Al, let it go," Edward said. This time, I smirked, and glanced over at him. He crossed his arms over his chest and shook his head at me, as if to say, _Please don't. _

I grinned and waved off Alice's suggestion that I take Advil. "I'll be okay," I said quickly, walking over to the ottoman and sitting down. "What are we trying to solve?"

"Edward's work wife tried to set him up with a _dude_ yesterday," Emmett said. Kate, the "work wife," and Edward had both started at the company the same day, and though she was happily married to Garrett, who worked on the floor above them, there was a running joke around the office that they were work spouses because they were so close and worked on every project together.

I laughed out loud. "What?"

"Yeah, apparently the word is around the office is that he's gay," Rose chimed in. "Kate always thought he was and was tired of seeing him mope around -"

"I _wasn't_ moping around!" Edward interjected. "I don't mope around."

"You do too," Rose said. "All the time. That's all you do, you mope and you snark. We call you Mopeward behind your back. Sometimes we call you Snarkward."

"Alright," I said, cutting off their argument. "So.. what happened?" Everyone looked expectantly at Edward, who looked annoyed that he was going to have to repeat the story. He sighed heavily and very quickly told me that Kate had asked him if he wanted her to set him up. He said yes, and Kate started describing a man, who works in their office, who was just _perfect_ for him.

I cracked up. "Well, is he?"

"Is he what?" Edward asked, glaring daggers at me.

"Is he perfect for you?"

"No, Bella, he's not perfect for me because he is a _man_." Edward paused, annoyed at our group's collective silence. "I AM NOT GAY!" he yelled.

"Jesus Christ, Edwardine," Jasper said. "Chill."

"Okay, okay. So what exactly did you all need me for?" I asked, genuinely curious because I wasn't really sure what debate they were having. So Kate thought Edward was gay. We probably all had, at one point or another.

"I need to know if you thought I was gay when you first met me," Edward said quietly, glancing quickly down at his feet when I looked over at him.

"And don't lie," Rose added.

"Well," I said, "I mean, when I first met you, you know, I thought maybe... possibly, you _might_ be..."

Edward looked devastated. "You did?"

"Yeah. But then you spent Rose's _entire_ birthday party staring at my breasts, so then I thought maybe not."

Edward's face quickly went from devastated to triumphant, and then his eyes... they were smoldering. Only for a second, but it was long enough for me to notice. I blushed and quickly looked away, clearing my throat.

"Huh. So did any of the rest of you think that about me when you first met me?"

"I did," Alice said.

"Yeah, I think so," Rose chimed in.

"Not me," Jasper said, shaking his head.

"No, me either," Emmett said. "But, you know, back in college, Tanya James did."

Edward's eyes widened. "She did? Did you tell her I wasn't?"

"No."

"What! Why not?"

"'Cause I wanted to go out with her too," Emmett replied. "I, ah, I told her you were seeing Jacob Black, who also liked her, so." The look on Edward's face was priceless, and we all cracked up.

"What is it about me?!" he demanded, clearly getting frustrated.

"I don't know, you just.. you have a quality," Jasper said.

"A quality? What does that even mean? Come on, you guys, what is it, is it my hair?"

I rolled my eyes. "Yes, Edward, that's exactly what it is. It's your hair."

"Yeah, you have homosexual hair," Rose added. Edward groaned at that and stormed out of the apartment, defeated, leaving all of us laughing so hard we couldn't breathe.

Paybacks are a bitch.

Later that night, I was home alone, drinking a glass of wine and reading a book on the couch. Alice was out with her on-again, off-again boyfriend, Peter, and had told me that she wasn't going to be coming home. I was enjoying my alone time immensely, and really into my book, when my phone buzzed, startling me. I couldn't imagine who would be texting me, but I sort of had an idea. Looking at the screen, I was not surprised to find that it was Edward.

_**You busy? - E**_

_**Maybe. - B**_

_**Maybe? What does that even mean? Either you're busy or you're not. - E**_

I rolled my eyes. He was probably standing out in the hall while he was texting me.

_**What do you consider "busy?" - B**_

_**Lots of things. - E**_

_**Gee, thanks for clarifying, Vagueward. - B**_

_**Come on, Bella. What are you doing? - E**_

_**Drinking alone in a dimly-lit room. Trying to read a book but **_**someone****_ is making it hard to concentrate. - B_**

_**I hope you're talking about me. - E**_

Wow, seriously? I sighed and set the phone down on the coffee table, turning toward the front door. "Just come in already, Edward," I called. The door all but flew open then, and in he strolled. If I wasn't mistaken, he almost looked.. nervous? No. No way. "No hot date with old what's-his-face tonight?" I teased, draining my glass of wine and standing up to go get more. Edward scowled and followed me into the kitchen.

"You really think that's funny, huh?"

"Well," I said, pouring wine into my glass and then getting a glass down for him, "it is a _little_ funny. You need to lighten up a little bit. Maybe Kate was just screwing with you." I poured his glass and handed it to him, and then hopped up onto the counter. Alice would never have let me do that if she had been home, and I had to take advantage of the fact that she wasn't. Edward was still pouting, so I nudged his leg with my toe and took a sip of my wine. "Oh, come on. Why is this bothering you so much?"

"It bothers me that _you_ thought I was gay," he said quietly, sipping his own wine. His eyes never left mine.

"Why?"

Edward sighed, and set his glass down on the counter next to me, stepping forward so that he was standing directly in front of me. "Were you not listening to me earlier? What I said to you? About us?"

"I heard you. I didn't think you were serious."

"What have I ever done to make you think I wasn't a serious person?" he asked with a sly grin, wiggling his eyebrows and making me laugh.

"You want me to name all the things you've done to make me question your seriousness? Could take awhile," I said, sipping more of my wine.

"I'd stay here as long as it took," he replied. He took another step closer, and now his thighs were pressed up against my knees. I gulped and looked up at him. He was staring at me intently, and I couldn't read him. I was nervous, and I wasn't sure if it was because of how close we were in proximity to each other, or if it was because I was afraid he was going to play some horrible prank on me. Knowing Edward, the latter of the two scenarios was the most likely. He sighed and gently plucked the wine glass from my hand, setting it down on the counter beside mine. "You still don't believe me."

"Well, I just, I can't wrap my mind around it. Was all this brought on just because you saw my boobs yesterday?"

"No," he shook his head. "No. This was all brought on the day I met you."

"But I thought you were gay when I met you."

"Even so," he said. "Even so." He smiled and reached up, gently brushing some of the hair out of my face. He let his fingers linger, slowly trailing them down across my cheek and resting them against my neck. Try as I might, I couldn't stop the goosebumps that appeared underneath his fingers. "What is it?"

"How do I know this isn't some elaborate prank? Truth be told, Edward, you don't exactly have a clean record when it comes to your practical jokes." He nodded.

"I know."

"So... "

"So you want me to prove I'm being serious?"

"In a perfect world, yes."

"What does that mean?"

"I just don't see how you can prove it. I've never seen you be serious."

"Oh, I can be serious."

"Uh huh."

Edward sighed, and looked down at me with the most determined gaze I'd ever seen on him. With his free hand, he gently pushed my knees apart so that he could stand between them, and stepped even closer so that he was pressed right up against me. "Don't slap me, alright?" he said softly, leaning down while pulling me toward him. His eyes closed and his lips parted, and before I could think to do anything, he was brushing them against mine. Once, twice, and on the third time, he solidly pressed his lips to mine. My eyes fell closed and my own mouth parted slightly on its own accord, and for a moment, we were just there, not moving, pressing our mouths together. Then, slowly, he began to move his lips against mine, taking my lower lip in between his and sucking softly. I heard myself gasp and felt myself start to respond, kissing him back, lightly tracing his bottom lip with my tongue. I fisted the hem of his shirt and tugged him closer to me, and felt his fingers tighten their grip on the side of my neck. He slowed the kiss down before I was ready for him to end it, pulling back and then dropping three short kisses against my lips before untangling himself from in between my legs. I hadn't realized that I'd wrapped them around his waist.

Slowly, I opened my eyes and was met with bright green ones, staring intently down at me. It had been such a slow, sweet kiss, and yet my lips felt like they were swollen and my entire body felt like it was on fire. "What...?" I started, shaking my head.

Edward chuckled. "What?"

"What was that?"

"That, Bella, was a kiss. Our first kiss, as it were, and a very good one, but a kiss nonetheless." He laughed when he caught the glare I shot him. "Come on, you can't be mad."

"What are you even _doing?"_ I whined, shoving at his chest with my hand. "Edward, you can't... I can't... _we_ can't..."

"We can't what? We can't see if maybe this could go somewhere? Why?"

"Well, there are rules."

"Fuck the rules, Bella. I told you earlier today that I was not going to give up until I made you see that we would be perfect together."

"But I didn't think you were serious!"

"Think again," he said lowly, stepping toward me again and cupping my face between both of his hands. He kissed me fast and hard that time, and when he pulled away again, he backed all the way up and started walking towards the door. "I'm going to leave you to your wine and your book. You think about tonight, and you can let me know tomorrow what you want to do."

"Tomorrow."

"I'm taking you to dinner tomorrow. We need to be in a public place."

"Why?" Great, he killed my ability to form sentences.

"Because it's all I can do right now not to ravish you right there on Alice's squeaky-clean counter," he said. "And as much as I want to ravish you, I will only do it if you _want_ me to. So. Think about it. Dinner tomorrow. We'll talk then." Edward winked at me and pulled the door open. "Sweet dreams," he said with a smirk, walking out into the hall and pulling the door closed behind him.

I sat there on the counter for what seemed like hours, staring after him and pressing my fingers to my lips. I made out with Edward Cullen. On my counter. Had that really just happened? And now he wanted to have dinner to discuss it.

Oh, I was screwed.


End file.
